


and under the stars we sleep

by whisperedmemories



Series: Summer Gladnis Week [4]
Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Constellations, Established Relationship, Implied/Referenced Character Death, M/M, Post-World of Ruin, Reminiscing, Sleepy Cuddles, Stargazing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-16
Updated: 2019-08-16
Packaged: 2020-09-02 00:01:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,211
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20266687
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/whisperedmemories/pseuds/whisperedmemories
Summary: Written for Day 4 of Summer Gladnis Week: "Stargazing".Gladio and Ignis stargaze under a clear night sky.





	and under the stars we sleep

**Author's Note:**

> Slight spoilers, this fic is in a similar universe to canon, though Ignis did not lose his sight.

Ignis had almost drifted off when Gladio said, “You can really see the stars tonight. Not a cloud in the sky.”

“Sounds lovely,” Ignis murmured, trying to sleepily tuckhimself back into Gladio’s chest, but his partner’s deep rumbling chuckle roused him again, and it was clear Gladio had more to say. 

“Of course, nothingcompares to a night out camping,” Gladio continued. He reached up a hand to run his fingers through Ignis’ hair, brushing the stray strands out of his face. “I bet you could see a whole bunchof constellations from outside the city.”

Ignis was exhausted. It had been a long day of hunting and it wasn’t an overstatement to say that every part of him ached and wished for sleep, but if tonight was as clear and cloudless as Gladio was saying it was, he would oblige him. He could fend off sleep for another half hour if it meant he would see Gladio smile, so stifling a yawn, he propped himself up against the bed-frame. “Would you like to go out and have a look?” He asked. “I’m sure it’ll be beautiful.”

The bright-eyed, almost giddy look Gladio gave him made the whole thing worth it. “Really?”

“Of course.You can point out your favorite constellations if they’re visible. I’d like to see them.” 

Gladio climbed out of bed and Ignis followed, plucking a throw blanket off the chair beside the bed and wrapping it around his shoulders as he padded barefoot down the hall, hand-in-hand with Gladio. 

A cool breeze greeted them upon stepping outside, and Ignis was glad he had thought to grab the blanket as Gladio led them through their backyard up to its highest point. He sat down there, tugging Ignis down beside him as he leaned back on his hands and peered up at the sky. 

“The view is even better out here,” he said, as Ignis settled onto the grass beside him. “If you look up there— over to the north— you can see the handle of the Big Dipper.”

Ignis followed his finger and glanced up at the sky, noting the stars that Gladio was telling him about as he leaned in and rested his head on Gladio’s shoulder. “I see it,” he told him. “What else can you see? I’m afraid I’m not particularly knowledgeable on the constellations.”

“Don’t worry,” Gladio said. “I’ll familiarize you. You gotta at least know the Little Dipper though, right? It’s next to the Big Dipper. If you just look for the North Star, you can…”

“Yes.” It was easy to spotnear the other constellation Gladio had pointed out, the star shining clear and bright through the night sky. “Do you think Prompto ever stargazes like this?” Ignis mused, yawning again. “With Prompto’s love of photography, it wouldn’t surprise me if he wanted a picture.”

“We can ask next time we see him,” Gladio replied. He put an arm around Ignis, holding him close. Ignis could hear the steady beating of Gladio’s heart as he relaxed against him. 

“Tell me another,” Ignis prompted.

“Hmm, okay. From the Little Dipper, if you look two hands away like this,” he said, holding his hand up to the sky, “over there is Cassiopeia. I guess it’s supposed to resemble a woman, but it just kinda looks like a weird sideways mountain to me.”

Ignis hummed in amusement. “I likeseeing you so invested in this,” he admitted. 

Gladio craned his head down to look at him, and leaned in to press a kiss to his forehead, but Ignis tilted his head up and kissed him on the lips instead. 

Ignis sighed. “I only wish Noct were here to see the stars too. Sometimes I wonder where he is now, if he’s still… if he…” he trailed off. 

Gladio shifted, gazing back up toward the sky. “I bet he is,” he said. “With Luna and the rest of those guys, watching us.”

“I would like to believe you’re right,” Ignis replied. “He sacrificed everything for us to have the light back, I want to believe he knows how grateful the world is. How grateful we are. Though I miss him more than anything.”

“Yeah,” Gladio agreed. “I do, too.”

Ignis blinked bleary-eyed up at the sky, watching the twinkling of the stars and the constellations that Gladio had pointed out. He thought about asking Gladio to show him some more, but Gladio chose that moment to yawn and stretch. 

“Are you tired, love?” Ignis asked. He was, too, but he was willing tostay out here with Gladio if he wanted to. 

Across the sky, a shooting star shot across the night, vanishing behind the houses across the street. Gladio gasped, gently untangling himself from Ignis as he stood, staring at where the star had dipped out of sight, his mouth dropping open. 

“Did you see that?” He asked. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen a real shooting star before.”

Ignis hadn’t either. He’d heard about them, sure, and how they were supposedto be lucky? But he had never seen one in real life. “Do we make a wish?” He asked.

Gladio blinked. Laughed. “I think we missed our chance,” he said. “but it was beautiful, huh? We probably wouldn’t have even seen it if we’d stayed inside.”

Ignis hugged the blanket tighter around his shoulders as he tried not to shiver from the cool air. “This was worth it, then,” he said. “If you want to go inside and grab a couple more blankets, we could stay out here a bit longer. Perhaps you’d see another,” he suggested. 

Gladio nodded, partially to himself as he mulled it over. “Yeah,” he said, slowly at first and then once more, with conviction. “Yeah. I’d like that. I’ll be right back.”

He hurried back into the house and Ignis spread the throw blanket out onto the grass, laying back on it and staring up at the sky. 

There were some things that he felt would never heal; likelosing Noct. But being out here, outside in the fresh air, brought back those warm memories of nights around a campfire, of Noctis smiling and laughing as Ignis presented him with yet another (not quite right) version of those cakes he’d fallen in love with back in Tenebrae. 

Noct may be gone, but nights like this always made Ignis feel like he was nearby. Close, even. Even if Ignis couldn’t see him.

Gladio returned with an armful of blankets. “Not sure how many you wanted,soI grabbed them all,” he said. He stretched out beside Ignis, tugging the largest blanket around the both of them. 

Ignis laid his head on Gladio’s chest, watching the stars as he stifled yet another yawn. “Can we sleep now?” He heard himself ask, sleep beginning to creep back upon him once more. 

Gladio nodded. “I’m pretty tired, too. I’m glad you suggested this. It’s a little chilly tonight, but the sky’s never been this clear in the city.”

Between Gladio’s warm embrace and the soft blankets, Ignis allowed himself to drift as the wind blew gently around them. They’d lost a lot, but they still had each other. Gladio mumbled a ‘goodnight’ to Ignis as he allowed sleep to claim him, the sounds of chirping crickets lulling him into dreams. 


End file.
